National patents, innovation and international agreements

Phillip McCalman

Journal of International Trade & Economic Development, 2002, vol. 11, issue 1, pages 1-14

Abstract: One of the most contentious issues arising from the Uruguay Round of trade negotiations was the attempt to harmonize patent policy. However, previous theoretical models have failed to provide a clear rationale for the coordination of patent policy, indeed they imply that world welfare may decline as a result of coordination. This paper argues that the conclusions of previous studies have been derived from definitions of patents that neglect to specify their duration. As a consequence, the monopoly distortion associated with patents has been overemphasized. In contrast, this paper models the choice of the hazard of imitation under a patent as a policy variable. This allows for a more detailed analysis of the determinants of patent policy in an international context, and isolates two externalities when countries set patent policy independently. These externalities arise from a free-riding incentive (policy competition) and the international spillovers from an innovation. Since these considerations influence the patent strength in both developed and developing countries, patents set on a national basis are inefficient from a global perspective. This provides an economic rational for international coordination of patent policy.

Keywords: Intellectual Property Rights; Patents; Trade; World Trade Organization (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2002
View list of references View citations in EconPapers

Downloads: (external link)
http://taylorandfrancis.metapress.com/link.asp?tar ... &id=E1BXKDNY2274LNP6 (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: http://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:taf:jitecd:v:11:y:2002:i:1:p:1-14

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/subscription.html

Access Statistics for this article

Journal of International Trade & Economic Development is edited by Pasquale M. Sgro and Bharat R. Hazari

More articles in Journal of International Trade & Economic Development from Taylor and Francis Journals
Series data maintained by Christopher F. Baum ().